Events: Monday, January 6, 2014

Michael McManus & Erin Brubacher in a scene from All Our Happy Days Are Stupid, directed by Jordan Tannahill. Brubacher lectures at Trampoline Hill, programmed by Tannahill. Photo by Tannahill.

The Garrison (1197 Dundas Street West)

7:40 p.m.

The venerable Trampoline Hall monthly lecture series, which features three lecturers on topics they are not professional experts in, kicks off its new year with a new curator in its rotation: Jordan Tannahill, one of Torontoist‘s Heroes of 2013. Tannahill has selected as his speakers Erin Brubaker, whose topic is power jewellery; Alec Toller, who’s into “friend therapy”; and Cameron Lee on Courtney Love. As always, the evening will be hosted by Misha Glouberman. The doors will open at 7:40 p.m. (and close at 8 p.m., when the lectures begin) and a very limited number of tickets will be available at the door, starting at 6:30 p.m.

Producers from Red One Theatre (Benjamin Blais), the Downstage (Brenhan McKibben), and Theatre Brouhaha (Danny Pagett) are organizing what’s essentially a theatre-script open mic with submissions given cold readings by volunteer actors at its Sing For Your Supper series. Before and after the readings, the evening will also serve as a meet-and-greet for indie theatre types. (Prospective readers are asked to show up at 8 p.m., an hour before the readings get under way.)

It’s not every day that a media tour opens with the injunction not to photograph “the sex blob,” but so began TIFF’s preview of “David Cronenberg: Evolution,” the organization’s first large-scale touring exhibition (for now, it’s stationed at the TIFF Bell Lightbox’s HSBC Gallery). It’s an exhaustive, stunning look at some of the wildest, most perverse creations of a pioneer of the body-horror genre—who also happens to be Canada’s most internationally renowned filmmaker.

Not content to keep it tucked away in the fall, last night the Toronto International Film Festival revealed its slate for Canada’s Top 10, the upcoming ten-day mini-festival devoted to the year’s best in Canadian filmmaking. Artistic Director Cameron Bailey joined Canadian programmer Steve Gravestock and comedian Steve Patterson to unveil the feature and short lineups, in addition to announcing a number of related talks.

Ali Eisner is already known for being a puppeteer, composer, and performer. Now she adds another line to her resumé with her debut photography exhibit, “Favourite Things.” As one might expect, each photo in the show depicts a cherished moment, person, or item in her life—you’ll find shots of everything from travelling and architecture, to puppets and musicians such as Kathleen Edwards, Ron Sexsmith, and Serena Ryder.